Steve Bayne - 2013 Cohort

• Professional Title: Director of Special Services, Storrs, Connecticut
• Years of Experience: 10-15
• Capstone Research: My research examines the experience of special education administrators engaged in due process proceedings and the factors that influence decision making.  I plan to use a qualitative cross case-analysis to understand this issue.

Roszena Haskins – 2013 Cohort

• Professional Title: Director Continuing Education and Diversity Advancement, West Hartford, Connecticut
• Years of Experience: 10-15
• Capstone Research: I am studying college remediation and policy implementation because of their strong links to persistence and degree attainment among underserved students.  I plan to use qualitative methods to understand the lived experiences and needs of college educators in their changing roles under college remediation reform.

Regina Hopkins – 2013 Cohort

• Professional Title: Program Manager, Interdistrict Magnet Schools,  Connecticut State Department of Education
• Years of Experience: 10+
• Capstone Research: Using qualitative methods, my capstone study will examine the efficacy of restorative practice as an approach to student discipline in a small school.

Jennifer Michno – 2013 Cohort

• Professional Title: LEAD CT/UCAPP Residency Program, Storrs, Connecticut
• Years of Experience: 10-15
• Capstone Research: I am studying the association between a school leader’s behavior in the teacher evaluation process, a teacher’s growth mindset, and reported teacher practice.  I plan to use a mixed methods design with quantitative measures to understand the degree to which these associations exist and qualitative measures to understand why, it at all, these associations exist.

Meg Smith – 2013 Cohort

• Professional Title: Dean of Instruction, Boston Massachusetts
• Years of Experience: 5-10
• Capstone Research: I am studying teachers’ emotional response to coaching.  As a Dean of Instruction, my primary role is to coach teachers; through my career experience, I have observed coaching as a practice that elicits strong emotional responses from teachers.  In my research, I will use case study to gather data regarding teacher perception of coaching.  I will utilize the theory of Symbolic Interactionism, a sociological theory that argues people emotionally respond to their perceived meaning of symbols and experiences, to understand how teachers perceive and emotionally respond to their perception of coaching.

Tayarisha Stone – 2013 Cohort

Ann Traynor– 2013 Cohort

• Professional Title:  Director of Advising and Certification, Neag School of Education, Storrs, Connecticut
• Years of Experience:  10-15
• Capstone Research:  There is an increasing number of K-12 students of color and a persistently low number of teachers of color. I am studying teacher licensure testing as a potential entry barrier to teaching for students of color. I plan to use qualitative methods to understand teacher preparation programs’ practices, policies, and support for students to meet state teacher licensure requirements, especially related to the basic skills test requirement.

Lara White – 2013 Cohort

• Professional Title: Teacher, West Hartford, Connecticut
• Years of Experience: 5-10
• Capstone Research: I am studying how a teacher’s racial identity and cultural bias influence his or her ability to effectively instruct diverse student populations.